Luca Giordano, called Fa Presto

Luca Giordano

Oil on canvas, lined. Surface has some minor areas of raised craquelure and areas of blistering and loss at the edges at least 2 inches all around. Blistering, areas of smooth paint and loss to the left of the man holding St Peter's left leg. Raised canvas seam visible across the center of the canvas. Under UV light, obvious retouching and thick old varnish at the extreme edges. Some small losses along the right edge. Selective cleaning to reveal the faces especially St Peter's. A few scattered spots of obvious repaint scattered across the composition.
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Datable on the basis of style to circa 1660-65, this work is an autograph variant of the painting in the Musée Fesch, Ajaccio (canvas, circa 1650-60, 177 by 226 cm).¹ Other variants of this compostiion can be found in the Galleria dell'Accademia, Florence; Private collections, Germany and Venice; and formerly in the collection of the Museo Campano, Capua.²

1. See O. Ferrari & G. Scavizzi, Luca Giordano. Nuove ricerche e inediti, Naples 2003.
2. Ibid.